Ravens coach John Harbaugh will be honored with statue at alma mater

Ravens coach John Harbaugh will be inducted into the Cradle of Coaches Association and immortalized with a statue at Miami University's Yager Stadium, the school's Director of Athletics David Sayler announced today.

The statue, which will be a bronze, full-body image depicting Harbaugh on the sidelines, will be put up and the Association induction will take place in early 2014.

"Miami is a very special place, and as anyone who played or coached at Miami knows, that the Cradle of Coaches is a great honor," Harbaugh said in the statement released by the school. "To me, there is no greater recognition in coaching. To be included with these great men is something only dreamed about. I am most grateful to Miami, which is to say the coaches, teammates and professors that made a positive impact on an impressionable young guy. Coach [Tom] Reed gave me an opportunity and taught me important lessons about becoming a man. Coach [Jay] Fry pushed and supported us. There are great teachers and many friends that I cherish to this day. Miami is the people who have made the difference in so many lives. Whole-hearted thanks to the current administration and board for such a wonderful gesture. I will be forever grateful to Miami."

The statues honor Miami or professional coaches of the year, who have been inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame or the Pro Football Hall of Fame, or whose teams won national collegiate or professional championships.

Harbaugh's image will also be added to the Cradle of Coaches mural that on the scoreboard on the south end of Yager Stadium.

"Miami University is thrilled to both celebrate and honor Coach John Harbaugh through his induction into the Cradle of Coaches Association," Sayler said. "The pride that John has for Miami University is clear from the moment you speak with him and he is another example of the great student athletes that Miami has produced. It is through love and honor that we are so exicted to extend this well'deserved invitation to Coach John Harbaugh."

The three-year, $27 million contract extension that New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady reportedly signed shouldn't affect the Ravens' pending business with quarterback Joe Flacco much, if at all.